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About the Book
Most tales begin with a phrase like "Once upon a time" and end with a phrase like "They lived happily ever after." Well, no such luck in A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Wide Window. The main characters are the orphaned siblings Violet, Klaus, and baby Sunny Baudelaire. With whomever these children are placed and wherever they go, they cannot escape the strangest, most unfortunate, but truly humorous incidents. In this story, the children are placed in the care of their strange Aunt Josephine, who is afraid of almost everything. In addition, mean Count Olaf seeks out the children in hopes of gaining their inherited family fortune.
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Before You Read
Throughout the book, the narrator interrupts in comical ways to explain the meanings of polysyllabic or difficult words, to translate baby language spoken by Sunny Baudelaire, and to comment on the children's plight. Ask students to list some humorous books or movies they like. Then, discuss what about those stories make them funny.
Portrait of the Imperfect Guardian
Have students create a portrait of the next guardian assigned to take care of the Baudelaire orphans. Students might:
- draw a portrait of this guardian and give him or her a name.
- develop a list of words that describes this person.
- identify where this guardian lives and how the Baudelaire orphans feel about him or her.
- write about how this person's character traits and situation will result in the next unfortunate event experienced by Klaus, Violet, and Sunny.
A Count Confession
Klaus, Violet, and Sunny were able to stop Count Olaf in his criminal tracks and keep him from gaining control of their family fortune. But what does Count Olaf have up his sleeve (or leg) now? Suggest that students put themselves in Count Olaf's shoes. They should:
- write a monologue from Olaf's point view, using the pronoun "I" for the count.
- write in a style that students feel reveals the personality of Count Olaf.
- include Olaf's feelings and reactions to what happened in The Wide Window.
- present a new plot that Olaf feels will allow him to get what he wants from the Baudelaire orphans.
A Sad and Unfortunate Performance
The author, Lemony Snicket, used the literary form of a novel to communicate an unfortunate event in the lives of the Baudelaire orphans. Students might work with partners or small groups to:
- develop and write an original scene with dialogue.
- focus the scene on an event in the lives of the Baudelaire orphans, such as being introduced to a new guardian, confronting Count Olaf, or meeting with Mr. Poe.
- write and perform their scene, with each group member responsible for one or more roles.
Interview a Baudelaire
Students can use an interview format to help them report about the lives of the Baudelaire orphans. They might:
- choose either Klaus, Violet, or Sunny as the subjects of the interviews.
- imagine that they are school newspaper reporters and that the orphans now live with a new guardian in their community.
- develop questions to ask their subjects, especially questions that point to why the orphans have moved to their community.
- create a newspaper article about the new situation of the Baudelaires, based on findings from the interviews.
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